Cross-Breeding in Horses. 153 



not true pack-horses, although perhaps allied to them : they had, 

 no doubt, a touch of Spanish blood and possibly of the Thorough- 

 bred. 



Let us now, as a contrast, glance at the peculiarities of the 

 thorough-bred horse. Racing, no doubt, existed in this country 

 long before, but received a new impetus from the introduction of 

 the Barb, the Arabian, and the Turk. The sires which were at 

 first imported, quickly established the great superiority of the 

 Eastern blood as regards speed, and when mares followed at a 

 later date in smaller numbers, they no doubt still further added 

 to the speed of the English racehorse. 



The modern blood-horse is of much greater average size 

 than the Arab or the Barb either of the present or the past ; 

 and a doubt exists whether this is entirely due to selection and 

 nurture, or in part to the early crossing with the native mare ; 

 in any case, it cannot be denied that every thorough-bred horse 

 in the kingdom, from the highest to the lowest, is to the extent 

 of more than nineteen-twentieths descended from the Eastern 

 horse. This foreign influence was not, however, derived from 

 one strain only, for the pedigree of ' Eclipse ' himself shows 

 that besides his descent from the Darby Arabian and Godolphin 

 Barb, he had five or six crosses of the Turk ; and we have a 

 strong conviction that the improved native horse, made up of the 

 ancient British, the Spanish, and the Barb, is entitled to some share 

 in the honours of his parentage. Be this as it may, the present 

 English thorough-bred horse has proved himself faster than any 

 of the breeds from which he is sprung; and although many 

 doubts have been cast of late on his powers of endurance in com- 

 parison with the smaller horse of some fifty years ago, and the 

 practice of training and racing has been severely criticised, yet 

 there is good reason to suppose that our first-class winnei's are as 

 stout as most of those which have preceded them. 



The thorough-bred English horse, in common with the Arabian, 

 possesses no doubt more muscular vigour, as well as nervous 

 energy, than any other kind of horse.* In addition to this he 



* From time to time it has been suggested, •with the view of improving our 

 breed of thoi'ough-bred horses, and particularly their staying qualities, to resort 

 again to the original or parent breeds ; but not to mention the ill-success of 

 such attempts when made, it must be evident that the tendency of this cross 

 "would be to diminish the size and to shorten the stride, and probably to render 

 the action too high; we can therefore scarcely expect breeders for the turf to 

 adopt the advice. At the same time it must be acknowledged that the Arab has 

 been more successful with half-bred and under-bred mares than the third-class 

 cast-off racer, inasmuch as with undeniable bottom there has been a hardier con- 

 stitution, better fore-legs, and higher action from this cross. Where the dam has 

 been of sufficient bone and size, many good hunters and handsome harness-horses 

 have been so bred, and still more frequently capital ponies and galloways; indeed, 

 this is one of the best modes of improving the breed of ponies. Arabs have, in 



